Lid for canning retort



Dec. 24, 1968 M. w. LOVELESS LID FOR CANNING RETORT 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Feb. 17, 1967 ullH FIG. I

lNVEN TOR. MARION W. LOVELESS FIG.4

ATTORNEYS Dec. 24, 1968 M. w. LOVELESS LID FOR CANNING RETORT Filed Feb. 17, 1967 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 MOE mm mm l Om L8 n ..m

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INVENTOR. MARION W. LOVELESS ATTORNEYS United States Patent 3,417,896 LID FOR CANNING RETORT Marion W. Loveless, 419 S. Allegheny, Tulsa, Okla. 94112 Filed Feb. 17, 1967, Ser. No. 616,939 4 Claims. (Cl. 220-41) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE This invention relates to an improved closure for a pressurized vessel, particularly the type of pressurized vessel described as a canning retort. More particularly, this invention relates to an improved closure for a lower opening of a pressurized vessel.

In my Patent No. 3,235,103, I have described a pressurizable canning retore having automatically upper and lower closure members and automatic means for receiv' ing cans from the bottom opening.

The primary object of this invention is to provide an improved closure for a large diameter opening of a pressure vessel such as a canning retort.

Another object of this invention is to provide a closure member for a lower opening of a pressurized vessel, such as a canning retort, in which the closure member can be moved from an opened to a closed position and from a closed position to an open position automatically and with the minimum of time and labor.

Still another object of this invention is to provide a closure member for a lower opening of a pressurized vessel, such as a canning retort in which the closure member is brought into sealable contact with the lower opening by hydraulic means.

Further objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following description and claims, and from the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a side elevational view of a canning retort showing a closure member prepared according to this invention position adjacent a lower opening of the retort.

FIGURE 2 is a top view of a closure member according to this invention in position on its supporting frame.

FIGURE 3 is a cross-sectional view along the lines 3-3 of FIGURE 2 showing the vertical relationship of certain cam members of the closure member.

FIGURE 4 is a fragmentary view of a side cam member showing its operation in greater detail.

The closure member of this invention comprises a large plate member which is brought into scalable engagement against a lower opening of a pressure vessel, such as a canning retort. In positioning the closing member against the lower opening, two motions of the closure member are required; first, the closure member must be moved horizontally to a position directly below the opening without being subjected to frictional engagement with the opening during its horizontal movement, and second, the closure member must be raised vertically from its position below the opening into sealable contact with the opening. As disclosed herein, the horizontal movement of the closure member is accomplished by a rack and pinion arrangement, but other equally adaptable means are envisioned, such as a hydraulic cylinder and plunger. The raising of the closure member into scalable engagement with the lower opening is accomplished by an arrangement of cam members which are actuated rotatably to apply pressure against the lower surface of the closure member, thus raising it into position.

Referring now to the drawings in detail, pressure vessel is shown, which in the canning industry is referred to as a canning retort, which has a top opening 12 surrounded by a collar 14 which provides a flat circumferen- 3,417,896 Patented Dec. 24, 1968 tial surface 16 against which upper lid 18 can be placed in scalable arrangement. The details of construction of a suitable upper closure member and manner of operation are shown clearly in my Patent No. 3,235,103, referred to above.

Pressure vessel 10 is supported on legs 20, portions of which have been broken away in FIGURE 1 to permit a view of the lower components of the pressure vessel, so that the elevational relationship of certain of these components may be appreciated. Also in FIGURE 1, the vessel is shown to include a receiving basket 22 which is held in place below the vessel by a matching pair of pivotal supports 24 at one end of the basket and a matching pair of swingable supports 26 at the other end of the basket. The basket 22 is provided below the vessel to receive cans which are discharged through lower opening 28 in vessel It). A detailed construction of an alternative form of basket is also shown in my Patent No. 3,235,103. Lower opening 28 is surrounded by a downwardly extending collar 30 against which lower lid 32 can be sealably engaged by being pressed against resilient sealing member 34 held in collar 30.

Referring now also to FIGURES 2 and 3, the lower closure member according to this invention is shown in greater detail. FIGURES 2 and 3 show more clearly the relationship of the components of the lower closure member of the pressure vessel. Positioned below lower opening 28 are a pair of parallel support rails 36 which are arranged substantially horizontal beneath the pressure vessel and secured thereto by a multiplicity of support brackets 38. At one end of each of the lower support rails 36 is a first end support rail 40 and at the other end of each support rail 38 is a second end rail 42. Support rails 36, 40, and 42 are substantially horizontal in order to provide smooth operation of the lower closure member. Positioned along each of the support rails 36 at properly spaced intervals are a number of roller members 44 upon which lower lid 32 rides during the opening and closing operations. That is, in its open position lid 32 occupies an area between the support rails 36 in the vicinity of first end support rail 40. Then, when the closing operation begins, motor 46 which drives shaft 48 is actuated and pinion gears 50 on shaft 48 mesh with racks 52 secured to the bottom of lower lid 32 to move lower lid 32 horizontally over rollers 44 to a position beneath the lower opening 28 in the pressure vessel with lid 32 being stopped sufiiciently close to second end 42 that lid 32 will completely cover lower lid opening 28. Shaft 48 is rotated by the connection of pulley 56 with motor 46 by chain drive 60. During the movement from a fully open position to a partially closed position beneath pressure vessel 10, lid 32 remains out of frictional contact with resilient sealing member 34 in lower collar 30. The most important feature of this invention is the manner in which lid 32 is brought from a partially closed position directly beneath pressure vessel 10 to a fully closed position of pressurizable engagement with sealing member 34 against roller opening 28. Lid 32 is moved horizontally on rollers 44 by the engagement of pinion gears 50 with racks 52 secured to the lower surface of lid 32. Of course, shaft 48 could be interconnected with motor 46 by other means, such as a V-belt drive or shaft 48 could be gearably directed to motor 46.

FIGURES 2 and 3 also disclose the components and their relationship to each other which interact to open and close the lower lid 32. In the opened position, lower lid 32 rests upon rollers 44 and rollers 62 positioned along the side support rails 36 and rollers 64 positioned adjacent second support rail 42. Rollers 62 have a shaft member 66 extending through lower support rails 36, and rollers 64 have shaft members 68 extending through support rail 42. Shaft members 66 are secured to an eccentric 3 roller 70 to which is secured a lever member 72. Lever member 72 is connected, as shown in FIGURE 3, to a hydraulically operated component. A first one of the lever members 72 is connected to a bracket 74 secured to one end of a hydraulic cylinder 76. The other lever members 72 on that same side of support rail 36 is connected to a plunger member 78 operating slidably within hydraulic cylinders 76. Thus, entrance of hydraulic fluid into hydraulic cylinders 76 causes plunger member 78 to be extended rotating lever members 72, eccentric rollers 70, shafts 66 and rollers 62 in directions away from the hydraulic cylinder 76. The interaction of eccentric rollers 70 and rollers 62 causes rollers 62 to be raised vertically as hydraulic cylinder 76 is actuated to extend plunger 78.

Stop members 80 are provided to control the extension of plunger 78, and the usual hydraulic overload may be incorporated into the system to act as a limit control.

In a similar manner shaft member 68 extending through support rail 42 are secured to eccentric rollers 80 which are attached to lever members 82. One of the lever members 82 is pivotally connected to a bracket member 84 in the same manner that levers 72 are attached to brackets 74. The other lever member 82 is pivotally connected to a plunger member 86 operating slidably within hydraulic cylinder 88. Hydraulic cylinder 88 is actuated by hydraulic fluid flowing through lines 90 and by means of hydraulic lines 90 is interconnected with hydraulic cylinders 76. Thus, when hydraulic cylinders 76 are actuated to raise lid 32 into its sealable position against opening 28, hydraulic cylinder 88 is also actuated to raise rollers 64 at the same time and same level as rollers 62.

Hydraulic fluid is pumped through lines 90 by means of a pump 92 operated by a motor 94. An important part of this invention is the provision of lid closing components on each side of the lid, as shown in FIGURES 2 and 3, a closing component on each of the four sides of the rectangular lid. The significant part of this invention is that the sealing force as supplied by the hydraulic members disclosed herein is applied symmetrically around the outer lower edges of the lid. This is accomplished by providing a hydraulic cylinder which is operable on that edge of the lid which is best described as the trailing edge of the lid as the lid moves horizontally into position beneath the canning retort. With a lower lid of other geometry, such as being circular, the hydraulic members should again be disposed symmetrically around the lower lid, and one hydraulic member positioned adjacent the trailing edge.

FIGURES 2 and 3 disclose this component of the invention. An hydraulic cylinder 96 is pivotally connected at one end to pressure vessel by brackets 98 and 100 as shown in FIGURE 1. Referring again to FIGURES 2 and 3, a plunger 102 operates slidably within hydraulic cylinder 96. The exterior end of plunger 102 is pivotally connected to a lever member 104 which is securably connected to a sleeve 106 secured on axle 108. Axle 108 rotates freely in support brackets 110 which are in turn secured to the lower portion of the pressure vessel 10 to provide support and leverage for axle 108 and its components. The ends of axle 108 extends through each of the support brackets 110, and to either end of said shaft 108 is secured a cam member 112 which is actuated by the rotation of shaft 108. At the lower end of cam member 112 is a roller member 114 which, upon actuation of cam member 112, can be brought to bear against the lower surface of lid 32 to assist in raising lid 32 to a sealably closed position in the same manner as rollers 62 and 64. Hydraulic cylinder 96 is actuated 'by hydraulic fluid flowing through hydraulic lines 90. Pressurized hydraulic fluid 90 in hydraulic cylinder 96 extends plunger 102 which, because it is pivotally connected to lever 104 secured to sleeve 106 and axle 108, rotates axle 108 which in turn rotates cam member 112 to bring cam member 112 to a position adjacent and below lid 32, and eventually to bring roller 114 into contact with the lower surface of lid 32. The actuation of hydraulic cylinder 96 is adjusted to coincide with the movement of lid 32 and to coincide with the actuation of hydraulic cylinders 76 and 88.

In operation, lid 32 is brought from a fully opened position adjacent support rail to a partially closed position adjacent support rail 42 by the actuation of motor 46 which causes shaft 48 to rotate causing gears to mesh with racks 52 so that lid 32 moves horizontally to a position below opening 28. As lid 32 moves to this position from its fully opened position, it rests upon rollers 44. During this movement of lid 32 from its fully opened position to its partially closed position, hydraulic cylinder 96 is actuated so as to retract plunger 102. This movement rotates axle 108 which causes cam member 112 to move upward and above lid 32 so as to be out of the way of lid 32. Lid 32 is then able to move into posi tion below lower opening 28 as described herein. Then, with lid 32 positioned below opening 28, simultaneous actuation of hydraulic cylinders 76, 88, and 96 cause lid 32 to be forced upwardly sealably against sealing member 34 around lower opening 28. Thus, actuation of hydraulic cylinder 96 as previously described, extends plunger 102 to cause cam member 112 to bring roller 114 beneath lid 32 and to assist in forcing lid 32 upwardly. At the same time, hydraulic cylinders 76 and 88 are actuated to cause levers 72 and 82 to rotate eccentric rollers and which act as cam members in bringing rollers 62 and 64 upwardly against the lower surface of lid 32 to assist in forcing lid 32 sealably against resilient sealing member 34. In the operation of opening the lid 32, hydraulic cylinder 96 is actuated to retract plunger 102 so that rollers 114 are released from below lid 32 and moved to a position out of the way above the lid, and hydraulic cylinders 76 and 88 are actuated so that plungers 78 and 86 are retracted thus lowering roller members 62 and 64. The lid 32 is then released from a scalable engagement with opening 28 and again rests on rollers 44 with racks 52 meshing with gears 50. Motor 46 is then actuated to cause shaft 48 and gears 50 to rotate with the meshing of gears 50 and racks 52 causing lid 32 to move horizontally to its fully open position.

Although this invention has been described with a certain degree of particularity, it is obvious that many changes may be made in the details of construction and the arrangement of components without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention which is best defined by the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. An improved closure for a large diameter opening of a pressure vessel, said opening having a circumferential sealing closure edge, comprising:

spaced parallel substantially horizontal support rails adjacent, below and exterior of said opening, each of said guide rails having spaced roller members;

a lower lid movable substantially horizontally relative to and parallel said opening to fully close said opening in one position and to fully expose said opening in another position;

means of controllably moving said lower lid between said fully closed position and said fully exposed position; and

means of sealably positioning said lid into pressurizable engagement with said closure edge comprising a multiplicity of rotatable eccentric cam members engaging the lower surface of said lid, at least one of said cam members positioned adjacent a trailing edge of said lid, said cam members, upon rotation thereof, moving said lower lid upwardly into said pressurizable engagement.

2. An improved closure for a large diameter opening of a pressure vessel as described in claim 1 wherein said cam member adjacent said trailing edge includes a shaft member held in position at a point above said opening and said shaft member is pivotally connected to a cam roller member and pivots said cam roller member to a first position beneath said lid to raise said lid to a second position above and out of contact with said lid.

3. An improved closure for a large diameter opening of a pressure vessel as described in claim 2 in which each of said cam members includes hydraulic means for rotating said cam members.

4. An improved closure for a large diameter opening of a pressure vessel as described in claim 3 in which said hydraulic means are interconnected to operate said cam members simultaneously in moving said lid into said pressurizable engagement.

References Cited FOREIGN PATENTS 369,490 2/1922 Germany.

JAMES B. MARBERT, Primary Examiner. 

